Better days await the Nigerian pharmaceutical industry as the much-expected N200 billion Pharmaceutical Intervention Fund initiated by National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, is to be released soon.

Minister of Health, Professor Onyebuchi Chukwu, said this in Lagos, at the 25th anniversary and thanksgiving celebration of one of the nation’s foremost indigenous pharmaceutical companies, Emzor Pharmaceutical Industries Limited.

The  N200 billion Pharmaceutical Intervention Fund was initiated by NAFDAC to make pharmaceutical companies self- sufficient in manufacturing drugs as well as encourage more investors into the industry.

The initiative is expected to create about 250,000 jobs for pharmacists, microbiologists, marketers and other stakeholders within the expanded pharmaceutical industry that would emerge.

The minister, who represented the Special Guest of Honour and First Lady, Dame Patience Goodluck Jonathan, canvassed for support for local pharmaceutical industries. “We need to support our local pharmaceutical companies, without that, we may not have a sustainable health system in Nigeria.”

Corroborating, Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, advocated for sustainable environment for indigenous pharmaceutical industries to thrive.

Ekwerenmadu, who formally unveiled Emzor Wellness Foundation, noted that providing an enabling environment for business growth needed not be over-emphasized as the government alone cannot employ all those seeking for jobs.

The Senate President, who commended Emzor for its giant strides despite daunting challenges in the last 25 years, noted that, “a lot of businesses were set up in the last 25 years and today they are no more.”

He, however, noted that the survival and impact of Emzor in the health and socio-economic development of the nation was a wake-up call for other companies, adding that Emzor’s contributions has made it a giant in Africa.

In her submission, wife of the Lagos State Governor, Mrs. Abimbola Fashola, urged the management of Emzor to initiate and commence health programmes that would advance the well-being and welfare of women and children to reduce the level of infant and maternal mortality in the country.

In her welcome address, Group Managing Director and Founder of Emzor Pharmaceuticals Industries Limited, Dr. Stella Okoli, expressed happiness that the firm, which started from a humble beginning 25 years ago, has recorded phenomenal growth to become a household name in the country.

Okoli said the company which had only four product lines in 1987, today has a product range of more than 70 brands which are distributed throughout the length and breadth of Nigeria and across the West African coast.

The high-point of the event was the unveiling of the Emzor Wellness Foundation designed to bring all the activities of the company under one umbrella.